Wondolowski provides scoring punch for U.S. team in Gold Cup final

Nearly a decade has passed since Chris Wondolowski led the Chico State men's soccer team to the 2003 NCAA title match.

Today, he will play for an even bigger trophy as a member of the United States men's national team — the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

Chico State fans and alumni around can watch 'Wondo' and his countrymen take on Panama for the Gold Cup Championship at 12:30 p.m. today on Fox.

Wondolowski will be making his 15th appearance with the national team, but this one's like none before it. The three-time-running Major League Soccer goals leader and last season's league Most Valuable Player has become a vital member of the national team's success this month, scoring six goals, including a Gold Cup Tournament-best five.

He got his first International goal on July 5 in a Gold Cup tuneup friendly against Guatemala. But what he accomplished in the two matches that followed put Wondolowski on top of the soccer world. He scored a hat trick (three goals) in the first half of a 6-1 win against Belize and then scored a brace (two goals) as a second-half substitute in a 4-1 win over Cuba in pool play to earn Goal.com's World Player of the Week award.

"I've always been confident in my skills and in my ability, but with the skills that I have, I feel I must be in the right situation because I rely a lot on my teammates," Wondolowski told The Baltimore Sun. "It's been a bit of a perfect storm of late."

Though Wondolowski didn't find the net after coming off the bench in the team's quarterfinal or semifinal victories, he's got another chance to strengthen his case for a 2014 World Cup roster spot today.